Win or Lose
by BlackFaerie1
Summary: With the Horcruxes destroyed and Voldemorts location revealed, Harry, Ron and Hermione are facing the final battle to end it all; win or lose. Just a quick one-shot, actually taken from a previous fic that I wasn't happy with and deleted to start over, that covers the final fight with Voldy, focussing mainly on Hermione rather than Harry, I don't know why. I just like her.


They were running cautiously along the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest, their destination was clear ahead of them; the Whomping Willow. It was where they would end it all, finally, win or lose. A centaur crashed out of the undergrowth ahead of them, they froze warily, recognising him as Bane, the leader of the herd.  
If he saw them, he did not acknowledge their presence, and as they watched, what looked like the entire herd thundered across the path in front of them, paying them no more heed than Bane had. They waited for a few more minutes until they were sure that the herd had passed before continuing. Hermione felt a sudden chill, and a wave of despair washed over her. In an instant, her wand was up, and her Patronus bounded around them playfully. She relaxed as the feeling of dread vanished and Harry smiled at her as she lowered her wand and the otter vanished.

"Thanks."

"You need your energy. Anything new?"

"Lucius is there. Bellatrix is on her way. They're there to stop you two from interfering. I'll take care of Bellatrix first, then…"

"No. Ron will take Lucius, and you will concentrate on Voldemort. I will take care of Bellatrix. I owe her one for Ginny. And Neville. And I promise you, Harry, I will make her pay for Sirius. I promise."

Harry nodded reluctantly, and Ron opened his mouth to argue. She shook her head firmly.

"Don't argue with me Ronald. I can do this."

Ron nodded in resignation, and they slowly approached the Whomping Willow. Hermione raised her wand, using all her concentration to raise a small stick at her feet, and manoeuvre it to the knot in the trunk. The tree froze, and they slipped between the branches, into the tunnel. Hermione went first, knowing that Voldemort would not attack them in the tunnel. He was far too arrogant.

They emerged into the darkness of the Shrieking Shack, and Hermione edged along the wall, allowing her eyes to adjust to the dark. She led the way along the hall, half turning as Harry grasped her shoulder and pointed up. She nodded, and carefully made her way to the stairs and began the ascent, wincing at each small creak.  
Harry's light Seeker's build allowed him to ascend without a sound, Ron was not so graceful; he was still growing into his lanky frame. Every few moments she could hear him cursing under his breath behind her as the stairs creaked and groaned under his weight. She resisted the urge to turn and shush him, knowing that it would only make him more nervous. Reaching the top of the stairs, she saw that there was only one room lit, and she paused, waiting for Harry and Ron to join her.

They drew alongside her and Ron squeezed her hand comfortably. She managed a half smile at the pair, then Harry moved forward, Hermione on his left, Ron at his right shoulder.

Voldemort was waiting for them as expected, and Bellatrix and Lucius stepped forward as they entered.

"Well, look what we have here. Wonderboy, his mudblood and the blood traitor. I really can't decide which one I'd like to play with first…"

"Hands off, Malfoy. The mudblood is mine. They're always so much more _fun_ than traitors."

Bellatrix smiled coldly and took a step forward, stopping only reluctantly at Voldemort's raised hand.

"Now, now Bella. Not so hasty."

"Master, they oppose you. You wish them to live?"

Her tone was incredulous.

"Patience. Bella. You will have your turn. But first, let us show them their hero. Let us see how strong the Chosen One is."

Hermione caught Ron's eye, and he inclined his head, just barely. They moved simultaneously, wands out to attack Bellatrix and Lucius. Bellatrix was quicker to react, she had a shield up in an instant, while Lucius had to dive to one side. Hermione smiled grimly as her cutting spell sliced through the shield, leaving a razor thin cut on the Death Eaters cheek.

Bellatrix shrieked in anger, and the three students reacted in the same instant. Harry leapt forward into the room, and Hermione and Ron jumped back into the hall, Ron to the right, Hermione to the left.

"Find them!"

"The girl is mine."

Bellatrix growled, her voice alight with what could almost be described as pleasure, and Hermione shuddered slightly as she ran lightly down the hall. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out three black hooter-like objects and threw them down the stairwell, then ducked down behind an open door, swiftly applying a disillusionment charm. She saw Bellatrix stalk out of the room, a second later there were two loud bangs and a wailing siren from the Decoy Detonators, and she saw smoke billowing up the stairwell in the faint light . Bellatrix hesitated, looked towards Hermione's hiding place, then back to where Lucius was running after Ron. The Death Eater hesitated, and Hermione held her breath nervously, sighing in relief as she fell into the trap.

Hermione moved swiftly, darting into the end room, crouching down just inside the door, setting a small plastic box at her feet, and she began the activation spell.

"Come out, come out, little mudblood."

There was a short pause, and Hermione froze, barely breathing. She could hear Harry and Voldemort faintly, duelling at the opposite site of the shack. She could hear Lucius taunting Ron, his furious replies, and she grinned faintly.

"This isn't a game, mudblood."

Bellatrix sounded frustrated now, and Hermione repressed another grin, her face a mask of grim determination. She heard the footsteps drawing closer. Two more steps… One more step… She tossed the box into the centre of the doorway, there was a faint pop then a loud squelch, and she grinned as she heard Bellatrix give an enraged scream. She darted into the room next door through a second doorway, and she peered around the door to see Bellatrix standing knee deep in one of the twins portable swamps. She threw down two more of the swamps, one in the hallway behind the first, and one in the doorway between the rooms, casting a quick illusion over each.

Bellatrix was still struggling in the swamp, and Hermione took the opportunity to dart into the room across the hall, from there she sent a series of jinxes and hexes at the Death Eater; a stinging hex, the same cutting curse that she had used before, a jinx that made thick, thorny vines wind up and around Bellatrix' chest, using the full body bind at the same time, which made it all the more effective. A loud thump from the other end of the hall distracted her. She looked around, Ron was lying on the floor in a tangle of robes, with Lucius advancing, wand raised. She yelled out the incantation for the vine jinx, it hit Lucius squarely in the chest, giving Ron enough time to scramble to his feet, and he shot a grateful smile in her direction.

A soft whoosh behind her made her look round, and she threw herself to the side just in time to avoid the cutting curse that Bellatrix had sent in her direction; the shout had given away her position. The wayward curse hit Lucius, slicing through the vines, and Ron turned away from Hermione as she cursed, focussing his attention on Lucius once more. A loud splash from behind her drew her attention, Bellatrix had escaped from the first swamp only to fall into the second, and Hermione grinned, brandishing her wand much like she would a lasso, she sent loops of thin vines at the Death Eater. They surrounded her and pulled tight, cutting tight and immobilising her. Hermione could see Bellatrix struggling to free her wand arm, she regained a little movement, muttering a short incantation, and the vines suddenly burst into flames. Hermione smirked; Bellatrix was predictable, and she had chosen this spell specifically; the vines which the spell created only grew stronger in fire, Bellatrix would have to cut her way out. She had a sudden flash of inspiration, and aimed her wand at the swamp surrounding Bellatrix' legs.

"Duro."

The swamp turned to stone, encasing Bellatrix' legs, and the Death Eater gave another enraged scream, the rage gave her the strength to somehow free herself from the vines.

"Reducto. REDUCTO!"

The spell had no effect on the magically reinforced stone, Bellatrix twisted her upper body and began firing off spells.

"Expelliarmus!"

Hermione disarmed her, the ricocheting spells faded away, and for the first time Hermione realised how quiet it was. Bellatrix noticed in the same instant.

"Master!"

"Hermione pocketed the wand and, firing a Stunning hex and full body bind at the immobilized witch behind her, ran to the room she had left Harry in. What she saw chilled her blood.

Harry and Ron lay at opposite sides of the room, pale, motionless. There was blood. Lots of it, though at first she couldn't tell where it was coming from. Then she managed to steel herself to look closer. Ron was untouched; but for the fact that he was not breathing, that his eyes were fixed open, he could have been sleeping. Lucius was lying near the centre of the room, on Ron's side of the room, a long gash running diagonally across his body.

She thought for a moment that thus was the source of the blood. Then her eyes swept across the room, fell on the still body of Voldemort, and fixed on Harry. His body was covered in a multitude of cuts, and she could see that the blood that spotted the walls was his. She feared the worst, he let out a small groan, and she rushed to his side, his breathing was shallow. Her hand shook as she pushed his robes aside to examine him. There were large chunks of flesh missing, as if someone had simply gouged them out, and she paled as she reached into her pocket, pulling out a small bottle labelled 'Essence of Dittany.'

She worked on the worst of the injuries, pouring two or three drops of the liquid onto each cut, impatiently waving away the greenish smoke which burst from each wound. His injuries now appeared to be weeks old, new skin had formed, though she could see that Harry would have several new scars to display.

Harry gave a small groan, and shifted slightly, his eyes opened blearily, and Hermione gave a small sob of relief, and suddenly she was crying. Crying for Harry, for all the lives they'd saved. And she was crying for Ron, for Sirius, for James and Lily, for Dumbledore, and for all the innocent people that Voldemort and his Death Eaters had killed, had tortured over the years.

Harry sat up and turned toward her, squinting, and she fumbled, her sight blurred by her tears, until she found his glasses and thrust them towards him. His face lit up with relief when he finally recognised her, then he took in her tears. He mouthed wordlessly for a moment, then he finally managed to choke out a single word.

"Ron?"

He examined her expression desperately, and she bit her lip, trying to force back her tears as she shook her head, squeezing her eyes shut desperately so she didn't have to watch his face fall, his eyes fill with tears, his heart break. She heard him trying to choke back a sob, then he started crying in earnest, and felt the tears running down her cheeks.

She heard a faint movement behind her, though it took her a moment to process the sound. When the realisation of what she had heard hit her, she turned, one hand scooping up her wand, the other swiping furiously across her eyes so she could see.

She half thought that it would be Bellatrix, somehow escaped from her trap, though the rational side of her brain knew otherwise. Then her eyes fixed on the figure before her, her wand fell from her hand, and she sank back down to the floor as Voldemort rose gracefully to his feet.

The clattering of the wand drew his attention, and he turned, his wand ready. Harry followed Hermione's glance, and gazed at Voldemort blankly, his wand hanging limply at his side.

"Do my eyes deceive me? Mr Potter, the Chosen One, has given up?"

Hermione flinched as the high, cold voice reached her ears, she caught sight of Harry, frozen, in the corner of her eye, and though she hadn't consciously made a decision, she knew suddenly what she had to do. Her hand trembled as she retrieved her wand, and she slowly struggled to her feet as Voldemort watched in disbelief.

"The Chosen One will not fight, but he will allow his friends to fight for him. Or perhaps you are hoping, Mr Potter, that she will die for you, just like your mudblood mother."

"I would die for Harry any day."

Hermione continued to watch Harry out of the corner of her eye. He turned toward her, his face no longer blank. Instead his expression was filled with disbelief, guilt and pain, and she felt her heart contract painfully, knowing that she had made him feel like that.

"If you were not willing to die for this boy you would not be standing here now. I don't doubt that. But how much will you endure for him? How much will Harry Potter make you endure?"

Hermione glared at him, willing herself not to be afraid, and Voldemort's smile was cold as he observed her.

"Let's see how committed to Mr Potter you really are. Let's see how much you will _endure_."

Voldemort raised his wand as he spoke, carefully emphasising the final word, and Hermione didn't have time to even attempt to raise a shield before the curse hit her.

When the darkness finally receded, she was on the floor, covered in a thin sheen of sweat, and her wand was lying several feet away. She struggled to sit up, and her eyes met worried Harry's worried green eyes. She tried to force a smile on her face. Her every muscle ached, and she bit a lip to suppress a groan as she reached for her wand. She had just managed to stagger to her feet when Voldemort raised his wand again.

"Crucio."

He sounded almost bored as he pointed his wand at her, when he finally released her, she was on the floor again, and Harry was carefully supporting her head. Something wet fell on her cheek, and when the dark spots disappeared from her eyes, she saw that Harry was crying. She patted his hand clumsily, and he helped her to sit. She saw him gripping his wand tightly, and she knew what he was going to do, and what the outcome would be. Harry stood, and she stood with him. He reached out and gripped her hand tightly.

"I'm sorry, Hermione."

She nodded, and smiled gently, encouraging him as he raised his wand, and he and Voldemort moved simultaneously.

"Expelliarmus!"

"Avada Kadavera!"

The jets of light met in the centre of the room, and where they collided, golden flames exploded into life. Hermione met Harry's eye in the split second before the flames surrounded them, and for the first time since she had met him, his face was full of hope and joy. Then everything went black.


End file.
